Millennium Management LLC Sells 254,561 Shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS)

Millennium Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS - Free Report) by 71.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 100,144 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after selling 254,561 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC owned about 0.08% of Provident Financial Services worth $1,890,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PFS. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 39.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 316,953 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $5,883,000 after acquiring an additional 90,238 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 40.7% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,387 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 1,848 shares during the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 105.8% in the fourth quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 25,581 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $483,000 after acquiring an additional 13,151 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 264,933 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $4,999,000 after acquiring an additional 13,188 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Savant Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Provident Financial Services by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 10,931 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $206,000 after acquiring an additional 664 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.97% of the company's stock.

Provident Financial Services Stock Performance

Provident Financial Services stock traded up $0.24 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $16.74. 628,909 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 728,168. Provident Financial Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $13.07 and a 52 week high of $22.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market cap of $2.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.95 and a beta of 0.86. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $16.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.01.

Provident Financial Services (NYSE:PFS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.03. Provident Financial Services had a return on equity of 5.60% and a net margin of 10.13%. The business had revenue of $208.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $206.86 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. Provident Financial Services's quarterly revenue was up 82.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Provident Financial Services, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Provident Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Provident Financial Services's payout ratio is currently 86.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on PFS shares. Wall Street Zen raised Provident Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Provident Financial Services from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.25.

Provident Financial Services Company Profile

Provident Financial Services, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Provident Bank that provides various banking products and services to individuals, families, and businesses in the United States. Its deposit products include savings, checking, interest-bearing checking, money market deposit, and certificate of deposit accounts, as well as IRA products.